Lycia

The name that is transliterated as “Lycia” in English is translated in Libras (Brazilian Sign Language) with a combination of “strength” and freedom.” The name likely means “wolf” and the people of Lycia had a reputation for being warriors and that they loved their own freedom. (Source: Missão Kophós )


“Lycia” in Libras (source )

More information on Lycia .

inclusive vs. exclusive pronoun (Acts 27:5)

Many languages distinguish between inclusive and exclusive first-person plural pronouns (“we”). (Click or tap here to see more details)

The inclusive “we” specifically includes the addressee (“you and I and possibly others”), while the exclusive “we” specifically excludes the addressee (“he/she/they and I, but not you”). This grammatical distinction is called “clusivity.” While Semitic languages such as Hebrew or most Indo-European languages such as Greek or English do not make that distinction, translators of languages with that distinction have to make a choice every time they encounter “we” or a form thereof (in English: “we,” “our,” or “us”).

For this verse, translators typically select the exclusive form (excluding the addressee).

Source: Velma Pickett and Florence Cowan in Notes on Translation January 1962, p. 1ff.

complete verse (Acts 27:5)

Following are a number of back-translations of Acts 27:5:

  • Uma: “From there we cut across the sea that faces the lands of Kilikia and Pamfilia, until we arrived in the town of Mira in the land of Likia.” (Source: Uma Back Translation)
  • Yakan: “After-that we (excl.) passed-by close to the land Kilikiya and Pampiliya, so-then we arrived at Mira, a town there in the land of Likiyas and we (excl.) disembarked (lit. went-down) there.” (Source: Yakan Back Translation)
  • Western Bukidnon Manobo: “And after we had crossed the sea which is near the provinces of Cilicia and Pamphylia, we landed in the town of Myra in the province of Lycia.” (Source: Western Bukidnon Manobo Back Translation)
  • Kankanaey: “Then we (excl.) crossed the ocean across-from the provinces Cilicia and Pamfilia, and we (excl.) landed/docked at Mira in the province Licia.” (Source: Kankanaey Back Translation)
  • Tagbanwa: “When we had now crossed over the bay of Cilicia and Panfilia, we came to Mira, a town of Licia.” (Source: Tagbanwa Back Translation)

sea / lake

The various Greek, Aramaic, Latin and Hebrew terms that are translated as “sea,” “ocean,” or “lake” in English are all translated in Chichewa with one term: nyanja. Malawi, where Chichewa is spoken, has a lot of lakes but does not share a border with the ocean. (Source: Mawu a Mulungu mu Chichewa Chalero Back Translation)

Translation commentary on Acts 27:5

The verb rendered crossed over is a verb meaning “to sail on the open sea,” as opposed to sailing along the shore. The sea off Cilicia and Pamphylia may be translated in some languages as “that part of the sea which was by the provinces of Cilicia and Pamphylia” or “that part of the ocean which touched the provinces of Cilicia and Pamphylia.”

It may be necessary to stipulate that Myra is a city and Lycia a province—for example, “we came to the city of Myra in the province of Lycia.”

Quoted with permission from Newman, Barclay M. and Nida, Eugene A. A Handbook on The Acts of the Apostles. (UBS Handbook Series). New York: UBS, 1972. For this and other handbooks for translators see here .

SIL Translator’s Notes on Acts 27:5

27:5a

And when we had sailed across the open sea off the coast of Cilicia and Pamphylia: After sailing to the east of Cyprus, they sailed north or northwest to arrive somewhere on the coast of the land of Cilicia. The photo shows two possible routes they may have taken. The phrase the open sea could refer to the part of the voyage between Cyprus and the mainland, or a short cut between the two points on the mainland.

Other ways to translate this clause are:

When we had sailed through the sea along the coast of Cilicia and Pamphylia (New American Standard Bible)
-or-
We crossed over the sea off Cilicia and Pamphylia (Good News Translation)

sailed across the open sea: The Greek word that the Berean Standard Bible translates as open sea is literally “deep.” It refers to where the sea is deep and therefore far from land. It implies that the ship is so far from land that people on the ship cannot see any land. Other ways to translate this phrase are:

sailed over the deep sea
-or-
sailed far from land

Cilicia: This name refers to a province under Roman rule. See how you spelled this name in 15:23.

Pamphylia: This name refers to a district in a province under Roman rule. See how you spelled this name in 15:38.

27:5b

Myra: This name refers to a city. It was probably a small city at that time. In many languages people are not familiar with this name. If that is true in your language, you may want to:

• Explain it in your translation. For example:

⌊the city/town of⌋ Myra

• Explain it in a footnote. An example footnote is:

Myra was a city.

Do not use a word that refers only to large, modern cities of today.

Lycia: This name refers to a district under Roman rule. Part of its coast is in the far western part of the photo above. In some languages people are not familiar with this name. If that is true in your language, you may want to:

• Explain it in a footnote. An example footnote is:

Lycia was a district under Roman rule. The region is now in the southern part of Turkey.

• Explain it in your translation. For example:

⌊the district/region/land of⌋ Lycia

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